the glass factory.           
                                        
                                        
                                      
                                  
                                  
                                          
 several  centuries  after  it  had  last 
 belonged to us, we  went on an outing to 
 the glass  factory  that bore our family 
 name.  it had changed  owners many times 
 since  our  ancestors  death,  and  then 
 stood  abandoned   for   a  long  while. 
 finally,  the  natural  end  station for 
 the buildings  that  survive:  a museum, 
 and a gift shop.                         
                                          
 there's  a  long  time  since my  family 
 made  anything.  by  many, we  would  be 
 considered poor.                         
                                          
 there  are  two main  factory buildings, 
 domed things of  several floors, made in 
 yellow brick. large  but narrow windows, 
 reminescent    of     some    cathedral. 
 custom-made  glass, of course, large and 
 leaded, and ashen. a bit  too dark to be 
 practical.  on  the  eastern   building, 
 some are shattered.                      
                                          
 the other one is publicly open.  there's 
 a  museum, with  wax figures of my great 
 great  great  grandfather, or something. 
 various tools  (or replicas) laid out on 
 tables, with explaining texts. a  lot of 
 glass     of     varying      thickness. 
                                          
                                        
                                      
                          
                                      
                                        
                                          
 i quickly sneak  out, and climb into the 
 other   building.   the   contrast    is 
 overwhelming.   it   must   have   stood 
 derelict  for   a  long  time,   windows 
 broken,  metallic  trash  and  pools  of 
 dark  glass  all  over  the   floor.  no 
 electric  lights, but i can  see by  the 
 light that shines in  wherever  the dark 
 windows    are    missing    a     pane. 
                                          
 however, the  greatest difference is the 
 higher floors: this  building  has none. 
 it is  one massive hall, stretching away 
 infinitely above me. somewhere  up there 
 is  some  great iron  latticework,  from 
 where chains  are  suspended,  and parts 
 of  machinery  has  been  falling  down. 
                                          
 there  is,  in the middle  of the  great 
 hall,  a   thin  spiral  staircase  that 
 leads up there. i sneak over  there, and 
 take a  few reluctant steps. after  just 
 a  revolution,  i notice  that  for each 
 step the  building  starts to  glow, the 
 bricks  turning a  dark  red,  and  then 
 orange,  all  the piled up debree  being 
 lit from behind.                         
                                          
 i stop  ready to run  down  and out, but 
 there's someone  else  on  the staircase 
 with   me  now,  pressed   close.   he's 
 looking  like me, short  hair  and  thin 
 arms, but  with ears  from  some animal, 
 and more  disturbingly,  completely made 
 of dark liquid glass.                    
                                          
                                        
                                      
                          
                                      
                                        
                                          
 my  fear holds  me  in  place  while  he 
 starts  operating levers  and  dials set 
 in the  center of the staircase. slowly, 
 it  starts  spinning, circling  upwards. 
 it's  an  elevator!   i   start  to  run 
 downwards,   but  now  the  liquid   boy 
 creature  grabs  hold of  me.  i try  to 
 shake  him off, but he's too strong, and 
 pulls   me   back    up   beside    him. 
                                          
 this  time, i turn angry  instead.  what 
 the  hell?  who is this guy, acting like 
 this? i  reach out my free arm  and slam 
 a  random   lever.  some  metal  bar  is 
 suddenly  released  between  us, hitting 
 him  on  the arm, forcing my release.  i 
 shove him off of me, and  he falls  into 
 the    levers,    messing    them    up. 
 immediately,  a  thin  rusty   chainmail 
 curtain is  dropped  around me.  but the 
 elevator also  speeds  up significantly. 
                                          
 the  walls   are  flaring  now,  yellow, 
 white,  almost blue. i close my eyes and 
 curl into a  ball. but  then,  the glass 
 boy  screams,  a  piercing   sound  that 
 forces my eyes back open.  i watch as he 
 becomes  too  liquid, his  body  pooling 
 down in his now  massive  tail, and  the 
 tip of it suddenly breaks  of in a glass 
 drop  that   falls  toward  the  factory 
 floor.                                   
                                          
 he's crawling  on the stairs, unable  to 
 keep his body upright. can't  reach  the 
 levers,  claws  at  my  chainmail  cage, 
 while  his  body  is turning  into  dark 
 pearls.  finally, he's lost too much  of 
 himself  and the  scream is  cut  short. 
 the   last   of    him    rains    down. 
                                          
 i  still  can't  reach the  levers  from 
 within my  cage.  looking up,  i  try to 
 make  out the ceiling,  but  it's  all a 
 whirling sea of  colours. below me glows 
 the hellfire of the  factory walls,  but 
 very faint. i sit down,  curl  back  up, 
 become still.                            
                                          
                                        
                                      
                          
                                      
                                        
                                          
 a  large clunk  shakes  my  entire body, 
 and  snaps  me  back  into  reality. i'm 
 back  at  the  factory  floor,  but  the 
 stairs   are   still   moving  slightly, 
 clicking  in place, carrying me the last 
 few  centimeters.  i  came  from  below, 
 somehow.  the  chainmail  is  retracted, 
 and  i  slowly  dismount   the   stairs. 
                                          
 shaking and crying,  i  make my way over 
 the  factory floor, wading through  dark 
 glass marbles.  a quick glance down, and 
 i  see  there's something  faint  inside 
 them.   embryos?    are   these    eggs? 
                                          
 i   shudder,   and   climb   back   out.